Books Recommended by Nassim Taleb
Models.Behaving.Badly.
Why Confusing Illusion with Reality Can Lead to Disaster, on Wall Street and in Life
Emanuel Derman
Source: "Convincingly establishes the difference between model and theory and shows why attempts to model financial markets can never be genuinely scientific." - Nassim Taleb
Thinking, Fast and Slow
Daniel Kahneman
Source: "A landmark book in social thought, in the same league as The Wealth of Nations by Adam Smith and The Interpretation of Dreams by Sigmund Freud." - Nassim Taleb
Zero to One
Notes on Startups, or How to Build the Future
Peter Thiel
Source: "When a risk taker writes a book, read it. In the case of [this author], read it twice. Or, to be safe, three times. This is a classic." - Nassim Taleb
The Invisible Gorilla
And Other Ways Our Intuitions Deceive Us
Christopher F. Chabris
Source: "The illusion of attention is one of the most important, surprising, and least known flaws in human thinking. This lucid book examines it in detail." - Nassim Taleb
Probability Theory
S. R. S. Varadhan
Source: "Gives a complete overview of the basis of probability theory with some grounding in measure theory, and presents the main proofs." - Nassim Taleb
Free The Animal
How to Lose Weight and Fat on the Paleo Diet
Richard Nikoley
Source: "A charming primer on the paleo idea, with an illustration through the authors own life. I read it in one sitting." - Nassim Taleb
Information
The New Language of Science
Hans Christian von Baeyer
Source: "If you want an introduction to information theory, and, in a way, probability theory from the real front door, this is it." - Nassim Taleb
Blueprint
The Evolutionary Origins of a Good Society
Nicholas A. Christakis
Source: "Excited to get [this book] as I am trying to go deeper into the notion of fractal (multiscale) localism & see what's wrong w/my thesis" - Nassim Taleb
The Mind Doesn't Work That Way
The Scope and Limits of Computational Psychology
Jerry A. Fodor
Source: "Horribly written (that is Fodor's charm after all) but his argumentation is so ferocious that he ends up loud & clear." - Nassim Taleb
The Formula
The Universal Laws of Success
Albert-László Barabási
Source: "[Approaches] the problem of randomness and success using the state of the art scientific arsenal we have." - Nassim Taleb
No Bull
My Life In and Out of Markets
Michael Steinhardt
Source: "The man is one of the greatest traders in history. There are a few jewels in there." - Nassim Taleb
The Sunday Philosophy Club
Isabel Dalhousie, Book 1
Alexander McCall Smith
Source: "I don't want to spoil the story but I felt that I was reading a detective story until I realized what it was..." - Nassim Taleb
The Wisdom Paradox
How Your Mind Can Grow Stronger As Your Brain Grows Older
Elkhonon Goldberg
Source: "I am now spoiled; I need more essays by opinionated, original,and intellectual, contemporary scientists." - Nassim Taleb
Bull!
A History of the Boom and Bust, 1982-2004
Maggie Mahar
Source: "[The author] had the courage to take a look at what was behind all of this religious belief in markets." - Nassim Taleb
The Status Syndrome
How Social Standing Affects Our Health and Longevity
Michael Marmot
Source: "Well written, humorous at times, and rigorous --it reads like a well-translated scientific paper." - Nassim Taleb
Plato and a Platypus Walk into a Bar...
Understanding Philosophy Through Jokes
Thomas Cathcart
Source: "Like a brief drink in an airplane lounge with someone funny, smart, witty, but not too funny." - Nassim Taleb
The Blank Slate
The Modern Denial of Human Nature
Steven Pinker
Source: "A great exposition of modern scientific thinking and understanding of the nature of man." - Nassim Taleb
Financial Derivatives
Pricing, Applications, and Mathematics
Jamil Baz
Source: "A condensed, but extremely deep , and complete exposition of the subject of theoretical finance." - Nassim Taleb
The Kelly Capital Growth Investment Criterion
Leonard C. MacLean
Source: "Finally, a compendium of the most rigorous research (gamblers ruin based) on risky decisions." - Nassim Taleb
Rational Decisions
Ken Binmore
Source: "Presents a comprehensive set of the principles and axioms behind neo-classical economics." - Nassim Taleb
FAQ
Did Nassim Taleb recommend every book here?
Not necessarily. This book list has Nassim Taleb must-read recommendations, but it also has a mix of mentions and suggestions.
How do you know Nassim Taleb mentioned these books?
Every suggestion made by Nassim Taleb is validated by our editors. You can find the sources to the recommendations linked next to the books.
Did Nassim Taleb actually create this reading list?
No. This reading list was curated by our editors based on confirmed mentions from Nassim Taleb, the sources are made available under each recommendation.
101 books
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